Chocobo! Chocobo!
by KitsuneVampire
Summary: Janus loves the Final Fantasy Franchise. However, a dangerous accident in the woods yields some very unexpected results. Now, he must fight alongside Yuna and her companions, and find a way home.
1. Wait a minute, I'm Where?

**Chocobo! Chocobo!**

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Final Fantasy X. Don't sue me. Raphael is mine though, so I can sue you. sticks out tongue 

**Al Behd**

translations

_Narrations_

CHAPTER 1: Wait a minute, I'm WHERE!

_The blonde looked down at the group before him. "Anyone else have anything to add?"_

_Janus stood from his place at the fireside. "I do," he said grimly. "There's something you all need to know: I'm not from Zanarkand, or Spira, or any other place you would recognize… Everything I've told you, about my abilities, my knowledge, it's all been a lie. This will probably mostly come as a great shock, but…" he trailed off. "You've all heard Tidus' story, but you haven't heard mine. _This_ is _my_ story. Just… listen for a little longer…_"

"I just have something to say to the last Ronso," Seymour smirked. "Yours was… truly a gallant race. They _threw_ themselves at me to bar my path! One… after another," The Guado clenched his fist, chuckling evilly.

"Kimahri, no…" Yuna said sadly.

"SWEET MOTHER OF GOD, IT ISN'T TRUE!" Janus sank to his knees, dropping the controller.

At that moment, his bedroom door burst open, and a blonde girl ran in, panic written on her face. "Raphael, what happened? Are you hurt? What's going on!"

The redhead pointed to the TV screen, eyes swimming with tears. "'Nique… it was horrible! Seymour killed all the Ronso! IT'S AERIS ALL OVER AGAIN, I TELL YOU!"

Monique walked carefully over to her brother, pulling him to his feet. "Janus…" she drew her hand hard across his face. "YOU ARE A COMPLETE IDIOT!"

"Ow…"

"DAMN STRAIGHT, 'OW!' Look, I went to that damn convention with you, I dressed up as Rinoa for Halloween so you wouldn't look like an ass all by yourself as Squall, I bought you that damn moogle plush toy for your birthday, and I _even_ tolerated it when you somehow learned to speak _fluent_ Al Behd. _Fluent, _mind you! But this… this is freaking BEYOND stupid! You're in tears over a damned VIDEO GAME CHARACTER!"

"B-but…"

"NO! YOU HAVE TOO MUCH GOD DAMN FINAL FANTASY! TURN THE FUCKING PS2 OFF AND GET THE FUCK OUTSIDE FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIFE!" She stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

So ended another day in the Lenoir household.

To put it simply, Janus Lenoir was probably the single hugest fan of Final Fantasy that ever lived. He loved the series. He could name you every single spell and ability that ever existed, perfectly reproduce a chocobo's 'kweh!', fluently speak Al Behd, used the prayer of Yevon on a regular basis, and had so much FF memorabilia piled in his room, it was beyond comprehension. Naturally, he was mortified that anyone could possibly insult his beloved franchise.

"**Oui pek sayhea** You big meanie…" he muttered.

He immediately heard his sister's scream from down the hall. "DON'T EVEN START WITH ME, JANUS! GET A FUCKING LIFE!"

"Oh, _that_ was nice…" he muttered. Trouble was, as much as Janus hated to admit it, his sister was right. His life revolved around Final Fantasy, and the only friends he had were ones who shared his obsession. In fact, about the only thing he loved anywhere near as much as Final Fantasy was his hobby of taking pictures of random animals and people he found interesting, then redrawing them by hand. For that reason, he always kept a camera with him, no matter where he went.

He stared forlornly at the PS2, but switched it off, and pulled a baseball cap on. Walking down the stairs, he grabbed his cell phone, camera bag, house key, and jacket from the hook, stepping out into the chill Tahoe air. Being a resident of Lake Tahoe, Nevada, Janus was used to the chilly spring, along with the large amount of tourists milling around the main city. Thankfully, Janus knew several paths through the forested areas close to the lake, which were not marked, so were largely ignored by tourists and even most locals.

He was grateful for the reprieve as he walked along the thin trail. He always sought after the quiet of the surrounding forest whenever he needed time to think. This particular trail would take him over a small stream and to a large rock, which was thankfully both easy to climb and an excellent place to just sit and think (or draw). Speaking of which, Janus came to the stream quickly enough, and looked around. Satisfied there was nobody around, he moved towards the old log that bridged the river. He'd walked over it a hundred times without incident, so he had no reason to believe that anything would go wrong, as he had an incredible sense of balance.

Janus made it halfway across without incident, but slipped slightly on the mossy wood in the middle, leaving him rather precariously balanced for a moment, struggling to regain his footing. Ordinarily, he had an excellent sense of balance, and could recover his footing in mere seconds, but unfortunately for him, a jackrabbit chose that precise moment to burst out of the bushes and race across, tailed closely by a fox.

_Oh, shit…_ was Janus's last thought before his remaining foot slid off the log. Janus tried to lean forward to compensate, but only managed to catch his arm on a protruding branch, leaving a long cut. It was only a fall of five or ten feet, but Raphael landed on one of the rocks in the center. Hard. He heard, rather then felt, several ribs (and his arm) snap, and then darkness claimed him.

He woke up face-down the pavement. _Wait, pavement? I was in the stream…_ He looked up to see that he was in a rather large and very futuristic-looking city. _What the… This isn't Lake Tahoe…_ Then he noticed the groups of people scattered around on the road, all of whom were staring at him. "Um… hi?" he laughed nervously. The people returned to their business, which was for the most part gossiping about some kind of sport.

He managed to catch a part of a conversation. "I hear the Duggles got a really great lineup this year!"

"Hah! Those simps don't stand a chance, not as long as the Abes got _him_!"

"Look, that's one great player, the Dugs've got six!"

_What are they talking about?_ Janus wondered. _Duggles and Abes? It's almost like they're talking about Blitzball, but that can't be right, can it?_

"What are you talking about, anyway?"

A black-haired woman looked at him in disgust. "Are you an idiot or something! There's a huge game tonight, remember? Half of Zanarkand is gonna be there!"

She shook her head, and turned back to her group, and resumed her argument.

_Zanarkand… No way in_--

He turned around, only to get knocked down again. "Hey, watch where you're--"

Janus fell silent when he saw the man before him. He wore a yellow t-shirt, which left his athletic chest open to the air. Over that was a pair of black leather overalls, and around his neck was a metal 'J' on a chain. "Tidus," Janus whispered in disbelief.

"That's my name, don't wear it out," Tidus said cheerfully. "You alright?" he held out his right hand, which was covered in a blue-and-red metal gauntlet, and pulled Janus to his feet.

"Yeah…" he managed to choke out.

The blonde cocked an eyebrow, but moved on. The woman from before was glaring at Janus enviously. "He actually _talked_ to you! _So_ unfair…"

Janus carefully followed Tidus, his mind reeling from what was happening. "Okay, one of two things is happening right now," he said to himself. "One, I'm in a coma right now, and I'm dreaming, which means I'm in a _lot _of trouble medically, or two, I'm dead, which means I am _seriously_ in trouble religiously…"

He looked up to find himself before an enormous building, adorned with large statues, posters, and the like. He could already hear cheers and cries from inside. "The game must have started already…" Janus reasoned. "But wait that means…" He almost immediately felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, and turned slowly around, knowing all too well what he would find. Sure enough, up in the sky was an enormous ball of water, carrying inside what could have passed for an enormous, mutated whale.

The surface of the sphere rippled in several places, shooting out smaller balls of light, which caused as many buildings to go up in flames instantly. "Holy SHI--" The Blitzball Stadium exploded behind him, and something large and yellow fell to the ground about five feet from him. "Crap!" He quickly dodged the swarm of people fleeing from the ruined Stadium, then made his way through the stragglers to the injured Blitzball star, who sat up groggily.

"Dude, you alright?" Tidus got to his feet, clutching his head.

"Ouch… I guess," He then did a double take. "Hey, you're the kid I knocked over!"

"Well, good to see you didn't lose any of that valuable cunning, Sherlock," Janus muttered sarcastically. Before Tidus could ask who 'Sherlock' was, the redhead cut him off. "Look, not to burst your bubble, but we really oughta get out of here before the _rest_ of the city goes up…"

"Right… Wait what d'you mean, the 'rest of the city?' Do you know something I don't?"

"Why don't you ask him?" he pointed over his shoulder to the man he knew would be there.

Tidus looked over for a second, then cried out, "Auron!"

"Bingo…" Janus muttered.

Sure enough, the black-haired unsent was leaning against a piece of rubble, red trenchcoat and all, enormous Katana in a sheath across his back. When Janus and Tidus caught up, the blonde blurted out, "What are you doing here!"

Auron simply jerked his head behind him. "I was waiting for you,"

"What are you talking about!"

Raphael shook his head, and followed the duo. Owing to Tidus's athletic ability, Raphael was having great difficulty keeping up. The blonde suddenly stopped in the middle of the road, looking to Janus expectantly, who was running to catch up. "You alright?"

"Yeah," Janus wheezed. "Just give me a--" He was cut off by a bright flash of light, and Tidus's mouth dropped open. Janus knew all too well why. As expected, everybody else on the road was frozen in place, as though time had stopped. Everybody except one, that is. A suntanned boy in a blue robe was standing before them.

"It begins," he said simply. "Don't cry," He locked eyes with Janus. "And don't worry,"

In another flash, the boy disappeared, and the other occupants of the road resumed normal motion. _Don't worry? What did he mean? _Janus wondered. When he looked up, Tidus had already taken off after Auron. He ran after them, barely managing to catch an exchange between the two.

"Hey, not this way!" Tidus exclaimed.

Auron turned around. "Look!" He pointed to the orb floating ominously in the sky.

Even though he'd seen it a hundred times in the game, Janus was still awed, and very frightened, in the presence of the demonic whale-thing. "Sin," he whispered. Both Auron and Tidus turned to look at him, surprised.

"You KNOW what that thing is called?" The blonde asked in disbelief. Auron just raised an eyebrow quizzically, but said nothing.

"Um…" Janus laughed nervously. _How to explain this_?

A loud crash alerted the trio to a giant monster with tentacles, which had embedded itself in a nearby building. It launched a volley of pods at the road, which stuck into the ground. Several unfolded, revealing insectoid monsters with wings, the Sinscales. Tidus attempted to fend them off, kicking and punching randomly, but was inevitably knocked down. Auron shook his head, and unbuckled a sword and sheath at his side, handing it to Tidus. "A gift from Jecht," he explained.

"My old man?" Tidus wondered. He fastened the belt, then drew the dark red Longsword from the sheath.

"A Longsword, right?" Janus asked.

Auron nodded, then tossed another belt, this time with two sheaths, at his feet. "I was told to give these to you," he said simply.

Janus buckled the weapons to his waist, then drew twin daggers out, which were fashioned like Rikku's from X-2. "Wait, who told you to give me these?"

"Not now," Auron said. "Now, we fight."

Janus nodded nervously. "I hope you two know how to use those," the older man muttered. Tidus and Raphael both nodded, and the trio stepped forward.

"These ones don't matter! We cut through!" Auron yelled, then swung his gigantic sword, cutting a Sinscale neatly in half.

Tidus was second, running forward and double-slashing another Sinscale, which dissipated into pyreflies. The third fiend, however, leapt at him, attempting to bite at his neck. Janus yelled in rage, and ran forward, driving his daggers into its back, severing one of the wings. It hissed in pain, falling off the blonde, and raising his knives in the air, Janus swung them down in a hard arc, lopping off its head, and the monster turned into the pyreflies and died. Auron nodded with approval, but pressed onward.

"I didn't know I could do that," Janus panted, the adrenaline still pounding in his ears.

"Neither did I," Tidus wheezed. "Thanks man, I owe ya one,"

"Don't mention it," Janus muttered. "Let's go!" He ran after Auron.

Tidus grinned, and followed.

They found the sake-chugging man fending off another small army of Sinscales. "Don't bother going after all of them!" he yelled. "Cut the ones that matter, and run!"

Tidus obeyed, slashing through one of the fiends with relative ease, while Auron easily cut two down, seemingly without breaking a sweat. Janus managed to fell a fourth, but the last knocked him over, and tried to gnash its pincerlike jaws at his face, only to be cut neatly in half by Tidus's Longsword. "Thanks," Janus gasped. "I thought I was a goner there,"

Tidus flashed him a thumbs-up. "Now, we're even!" But they turned to find that Auron had yet again run ahead.

Janus knew what was up ahead, and couldn't help but feel more than a little bit nervous. "Sinspawn Ammes," He whispered, and ran after Auron. Once again, Janus's prediction came true; the great ugly tentacle thing was embedded in the middle of the road, defying all laws of nature with its sheer existence. And at its base, there was of course a handful of Sinscales, gathered and waiting.

Ammes cast its signature (and only) spell, Demi, upon their arrival, but the trio got up easily enough.

"Get outta my town!" Tidus yelled at the fiend.

"Oh, and I'm _sure _it'll listen to _you_," Janus countered sarcastically. Auron, however, just smirked, saying, "Some can't wait to die!"

His body seemed to glow with a reddish energy for a moment, and then he leapt into the air, driving the Katana into the ground, sending waves of explosions at the fiends. Any Sinscales in range were killed instantly (Janus half expected the 'OVERKILL' message to pop up over each one, before realizing how entirely stupid that sounded).

Tidus just gaped openmouthed at the older man. "The hell was that!"

"Just _slash _the damn thing, and ask questions later!" Janus charged forward, raising his daggers, but was thrown back by another Demi spell. Panting from the sudden drain on his body, Janus carefully stood up, to find Tidus standing, looking shocked at something.

"This… feels really weird…" he muttered.

Auron ran up and swung his giant sword, hacking off several of the monster's tentacles. "It's called Overdrive! Use the power boost, and kill it!" he yelled, and the blonde obliged.

"Right!" Tidus's body glowed blue briefly, and then he charged forward, performing a somersault in midair, and brought his sword down on Ammes hard. "Hell yeah!" he exclaimed, running back from the monster as it loosed off another Demi spell. By now, Janus was very tired, and even Tidus and Auron were sagging slightly.

Suddenly, Auron stood, pushing his glasses up with one hand, and then rushed forward, stabbing Ammes with his blade, sinking it deep into the monster's hide. It loosed a shriek of pain; Janus attempted to figure out what exactly the monster screamed _with_, but figured it was unimportant, as it had burst into pyreflies, leaving behind its shell. The older man simply cracked his neck, and strode onward, chugging from his sake jug as he went.

Janus sank to one knee, panting heavily. "Does he _ever _get tired?"

Tidus looked back towards the figure of Auron, which was looking back at them impatiently. "I don't think so," he muttered. "Come on, we should get moving," he pulled the redhead up to his feet, and ran off after Auron.

He tossed small bottles of blue liquid at Janus and Tidus. "Drink," he said simply. "And be quick about it; we don't have much time!" Janus gagged on the thick fluid, but as soon as he choked it down, he felt a warm sensation spread through his body, and the fatigue of the battle went away. He assumed it was a Potion, and tossed the empty bottle aside. Tidus had apparently finished off his own, and was following the always-moving Auron, and Janus quickly followed. When they caught up with him once more, they were in front of the large billboard of Jecht's face, which was flickering from lack of power. Janus heard Tidus darkly mutter, "What are you laughing at, old man?" then turned to Auron. "Auron, let's get out of here!" But the older man shook his head.

"We're expected,"

Tidus sighed. "Gimme a break, man!"

The great blob-thing in the sky that was Sin was now almost directly overhead. Still, Auron kept the trio pressing forward, until yet another (now much larger) army of Sinscales had landed in front of them, as well as behind and on both sides. The older man stared grimly at what was before him. "This could be bad," he mused.

"No, you think!" Tidus's voice was now shrill, as he was obviously scared out of his mind.

_3… 2… 1… _Auron's attention shifted to the side of the road, where a large tanker truck had overturned, dangling precariously over the edge. "That! Knock it down!"

"What? Are you crazy!" Tidus slashed through one of the fiends that had gotten too close.

"Trust me; you'll see!" Auron hacked viciously at the part holding the truck together, which lurched about an inch. "You!" he barked at Janus, "cover us!"

Janus did as he was told, fending off various Sinscales (and doing a fairly poor job of it). Then he heard the explosion, and knew what was coming. He turned around, to see the looming face of Jecht falling towards him on its giant building-thing. "Aw, holy SHIT!"

Janus jumped out of the way just in time. "Holy crap, that was close,"

"Go!" Janus looked around to see Auron and Tidus running quickly across the 'bridge', and followed suit.

He ran harder than he'd ever run before, ignoring the fierce burning in his legs, and trying to dodge the pillars of flames spewing from the shattering windows beneath him. _I'm not gonna make it… There's no way I can make that jump…_

The whole universe seemed to be running in slow-motion for that brief instant. Janus saw Auron clear the bridge effortlessly, Tidus barely grabbing the edge. He reached for the edge, grabbed at it, and missed.

For a split second, he thought it was all over, and then he felt a very strong hand grab the back of his jacket, and pull him up. Of course, it was Auron who was holding him up, and the older man was ignoring the fact that his grip was slowly choking Janus and Tidus. Instead, he was simply looking up at the hideous, writhing mass above them that was Sin.

"You are sure?" he said quietly. Whatever answer he received, neither of the two struggling in is grip heard it. He looked at Tidus. "This is it. This is your story," he turned his head in Janus's direction. "And yours as well. It all begins here," the other two were forced to watch in horror as Auron was absorbed by Sin, and then both blacked out.

"Hey!"

Janus groaned. "Go away, I need to sleep,"

"Hey!"

Janus froze. _No way_… He stood, and opened his eyes. He was back at Lake Tahoe. He looked down, and almost screamed in surprise; he was actually _standing_ on the surface of the lake!

"Domovoi?" There was no doubt about it, the voice had definitely been his brother's. "What's going on here?" He noticed a two figures standing out in the lake, and ran towards them. He gasped; the first was his brother Domovoi, standing beside Janus himself, only ten years younger!

Janus felt the tears sting his eyes. He remembered that day all too well, how Domovoi had been drunk, how Janus had told him he hated him, how his brother had struck him, slamming the door on the way out, and above all, the sight of his brother laying in a hospital bed, and his parents' and sister's tears when the doctors told them he was in a coma, and would not wake up.

_I thought about lots of things, like what had happened, how I'd gotten myself into this mess. Truth be told, I was just a lost little kid in a strange world, and I wasn't going home. I started to feel really weird, you know, like I was falling asleep. I think I had a dream. I dreamt about being alone. I tried calling for Domovoi, for Monique, for my friends, for my parents, but nobody answered because there was nobody there for me…_


	2. A Meeting

**Chocobo! Chocobo!**

DISCLAIMER: Don't own, don't sue. But Janus is mine.

Also, for the record, Janus is _actually_ pronounced 'Yanus'. I was getting some questions on that.

Furthermore, this chapter will deviate quite a bit more from what is shown in the game than the last, and a lot of Al Behd is in here, so bear with me.

**Al Behd**

translations

_Narration_

CHAPTER 2: A Meeting

"Hey, wake up!" Janus opened an eye blearily. Tidus was standing over him. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Janus stood, and winced. _Oh, my head…_ "Okay, not fine,"

Tidus looked around for a moment. "Geez, what happened? And where are we, anyway?"

Janus took in his surroundings. _The Baaj Temple ruins… _"It looks like some kind of temple. We should probably go that way," he pointed towards the spire of the temple, rising up in the distance.

"Why that way? That place is falling apart!" Tidus argued. "We should probably stay here and light a signal fire or something; maybe a ship'll see us!"

Janus shook his head. "Bad idea. A storm's coming, and we need shelter," He pointed to the storm clouds above them, and a low rumble of thunder ripped through the sky.

The blonde frowned. "You're probably right. You can swim, right?"

"Grew up on a lake!" Janus replied cheerfully.

"Good. Let's go," Without another word, Tidus dove into the water, and Janus followed suit.

They quickly reached a small platform, which led up to a stone pathway over the water. "Yeesh, that thing looks like it's about to fall," Tidus observed, pointing to the path. "You know, I just realized: I never got your name," he looked expectantly at the redhead.

"It's Janus," he held out his hand, which the blonde took. "and I think we've covered your name," he grinned.

"Cool name," Tidus grinned back. "So Janus, let's get the hell outta here!"

"Right!" and he ran quickly up the steps, and out onto the pathway. He'd taken two steps, when he heard a resounding crack split the air. _Aw, crap,_ he thought. _I forgot about the stupid bridge…_

"Why'd you stop?" Tidus had walked up behind him. Janus turned, tried to run, to warn Tidus of the impending danger, but the bridge gave way beneath him, and the duo was thrown unceremoniously into the water.

Janus surfaced, gasping for air. "You okay?" he heard Tidus call. Janus gave him a brief thumbs up sign, before feeling a wrenching pain in his lower leg.

A green fishlike fiend (which Janus dimly recognized as a Sahagin) had latched onto his leg, and blood was now trickling from the wound. With another jerk, Janus was pulled under, and the fiend was dragging him down to the depths. His lungs burning for air, he managed to jerk the daggers out of their sheaths, and drove them into the monster's eyes. It immediately let go of his calf and died, and Janus turned to see Tidus swimming frantically towards him, followed closely by an enormous fish fiend, the Geosgaeno.

Janus immediately panicked, grabbing and kicking at the water in an attempt to outswim the enormous fiend, but soon felt the searing pain of a large claw digging into his back. He screamed in agony, and consequently inhaled quite a bit of seawater, and blacked out.

_I'd never felt pain like that before in my life. I thought for sure I would die, and had it not been for Tidus, I would have._

Janus woke back up to a very concerned-looking Tidus slapping his face. "Shit, Janus, you better not die on me, man!"

"Anyone catch the number of that truck?" Janus groaned.

"Okay, you're apparently alive enough to be a smartass," Tidus observed. "I looked at your wound, and wrapped what was left of your jacket around it. He must've just nicked you or something, 'cause it wasn't bleeding a whole lot,"

Janus shivered. "Either that, or the cold is keeping the blood from flowing,"

"I dumped one of those Potion things on it, too, so you shouldn't have too much trouble. Think you can walk?" Janus nodded. "Then let's go, before we freeze!"

They walked up the stairs, and into a large hall, with statues surrounding it. "We need to get a fire going," Janus said, trying to stop his teeth from chattering. He pointed to the remains of a campfire. "We could burn that. Let's split up and search for tinder and other such necessities,"

The Blitzer nodded. "Right. You take that door over there," he motioned to a moss-covered archway behind Janus, "and I'll check out those stairs," he pointed behind him. "If you run into trouble, I guess just yell or something. I'll come running," he gave Janus the thumbs-up sign, and Janus did the same.

Janus limped over to the door, pushing against it until it creaked open. Beyond was a room filled with rubble. From the look of it, the ceiling had caved in, and rainwater was pouring through the hole. What he was looking for, however, was the large, overturned table in the center. Sure enough, the drawer in said table was open, and inside was a pair of smooth stones, which he recognized as flints. Janus pocketed them, chuckling. "I always wondered why someone would keep a flint in here, for no apparent reason at all…" and he left the room.

To his surprise, Tidus had already returned, carrying a dried-out bouquet of dead flowers. "Think this'll work?" he held up the flowers.

"That's perfect," Janus said dismissively. "Just put them on top of the campfire,"  
"So, what'd you get?" Janus held up the flints. "A couple of rocks? What are we gonna do with that?"

Janus rolled his eyes. "Obviously, you've never been camping…" He arranged the withered stems to his liking, and struck the flint, showering the tinder with sparks. On his third try, a few of the sparks caught, causing the tips of the dead flowers to glow. Janus gently blew on them, and the sparks exploded into flame. "See? You learn a few things in boy scouts!" he grinned at his accomplishment, and turned to look at Tidus, expecting approval, but the blonde was already snoring.

_Alone again…_ He thought. He stared intently into the flames, fighting to keep his eyes open, but the exhaustion from what he'd experienced thus far overwhelmed him, and he drifted off.

Janus was in his bedroom. His first reaction was confusion, but then logic kicked in. Of course, it had all been a dream. He swore off Final Fantasy then and there. No more games for him. He heard the door open, and Monique walked in.

"What's up?" he asked.

"It was a stupid idea, Janus," she said bitterly.

"What?"

"You never should have run off like that! I was worried sick!"

"What the hell are you talking about, Nique?"

"The accident in the stream, you idiot! Nobody knows where you are! I don't want to lose another brother because of your stupidity!"

Janus felt a wave of grief wash over him as the statement finished. The argument that had ended in Domovoi running off had been started by Janus suggesting his brother stop drinking. Was he truly the one at fault for Domovoi's coma?

Monique continued berating him. "After ten years, I thought you'd at least be a little bit worried about your own safety!"  
"Why should I bother? _Apparently_, I'm not wanted because my _stupidity_ killed Domovoi!" He threw a punch at his sister's face, but her body dispersed into pyreflies. The image of the robed boy from Zanarkand replaced her.

"You _were_ worried."

"Look out!" Janus jolted awake. He was back in the ruins. He looked up, and immediately recognized the insectoid monster, Klikk, jumping towards him. With a yelp, he rolled out of the way just as the fiend landed. It stood, hissing at the duo before it.

"Let's do this," Tidus said, pulling out his Longsword. Janus unsheathed his daggers at the same time. The creature lunged forward, baring its claws, but Tidus slashed at its head, forcing it back. Janus ran around to its side, stabbing it repeatedly in the back, but Klikk kicked him, leaving a gash across his chest. He felt its weight on his back, the searing pain as the fiend stepped on his wound, and for the third time that day, believed himself to be dead. The next instant, a loud explosion reached his ears, and the fiend had disappeared from his back. It had been knocked aside by a large chunk of stone, and a group of people carrying guns rushed forward. All of them wore goggles, and strange suits of armor. The smallest of the group, obviously a girl, stepped forward, clenching her fists. _Rikku_, Janus thought to himself.

Tidus looked visibly heartened. "Hey, you on our side? Cool!" Rikku pulled a grenade out of the pack at her hip, pulled the pin, and chucked it at the fiend. The idiot monster stared at it for a moment, not knowing what to make of this strange object. Then the timer ran out, and Klikk was hurled several meters up into the air by the explosion. Rikku then pointed at the fiend and yelled at her companions, "**Ubah vena! **Open fire!" At her command, the other Al Behd fired their weapons, and the monster was reduced to dust in seconds. The team quickly rushed forward, surrounding Tidus and Janus. A man wearing a mask grabbed Tidus by the hair, and another with blonde hair held a gun to Janus's head.

"Hey, lemme go!" Tidus complained, but the others responded by pointing their guns at him.

"**Fryd yna draca? **What are these?" queried a man with a beard.

The one with the mask spoke up. "**Drao yna fiends, eh risyh teckieca! **They are fiends, in human disguise!"

Then, the blonde. "**Oac, ed ec cu! **Yes, it is so!"

Mask-man held a knife to Tidus's throat. "**Fa gemm dras? **We kill them?"

Janus decided now would be an opportune time to exercise his knowledge of the language. "**Fyed! Tuh'd rind ic! Fa yna hud ahaseac! **Wait! Don't hurt us! We are not enemies!" Everyone else, especially Tidus, merely stared at him in shock.

Rikku removed her goggles, and stared at him carefully. "**O-Oui cbayg uin myhkiyka? **Y-You speak our language?"

"**Oac! E ys vmiahd! **Yes! I am fluent!"

Rikku nodded to herself, as if deciding something. "**Fa pnehk dras fedr ic. **We bring them with us." She walked over to Tidus. "**Cunno,** Sorry," she whispered, and rammed her fist into his gut. Tidus collapsed, and two of the other Al Behd picked him up. She then turned to Janus, and said in English, "You're not really Al Behd, are you?"

_Well, it couldn't hurt to tell a little white lie. I could pull it off with the green eyes… _"No, I'm not a full-blooded Al Behd. My mother was, though," He _had_ gotten his eyes from his mother, after all.

Rikku seemed satisfied. "Well your accent is horrible, but other than that, you speak Al Behd really well! She taught it to you, right?"

Janus thought for a moment. "No, I learned it myself. She died when I was really young," Which was mostly the truth.

Rikku's eyes showed sympathy for a moment. "Our ship is outside. We can…" she looked him over once. "We need to treat you and your friend's wounds, and you could probably use some new clothes, I think," Janus looked down at himself, and flushed red; there were probably two square inches of undamaged fabric on him.

"Yeah, that might be a good idea…"  
Janus followed the other Al Behd, Rikku making introductions along the way.

"That's Nedus," she pointed to the man with the mask, who nodded. "Keyakku," she pointed to the blonde.

"**Rao, cunno ypuid dra kih drehk,** Hey, sorry about the gun thing," he said quietly.

Janus forced a smile, and answered, "**Tuh'd finno ypuid ed.** Don't worry about it." Keyakku nodded with approval.

Rikku pointed to the bearded man. "That one's Kumal," he shook Janus's hand. "And I'm Rikku!" she said cheerily, heartily shaking his hand. "It's not oftenwe get non-natives who took the time and effort to learn our language. I think the last two were High Summoner Braska and one of his guardians, I forgot his name…" She looked thoughtful for a moment as she tried to remember the name of the guardian. _Huh, the game never mentioned anything about Auron or Jecht knowing Al Behd…It was probably Auron._

"Oh, well! Here's our boat!" Rikku led Janus and the Al Behd out onto a stone walkway, anchored at the end of which was what Janus instantly recognized as the Al Behd ship. He followed the others up the gangplank and onto the deck, where Keyakku and Nedus unceremoniously dumped Tidus's body. Janus tried to go to him, but Rikku held him back. "Don't worry; we'll take care of him in a while. You come with me," She led him towards the door which led into the ship, but was stopped by a tall, heavily tattooed man in overalls.

"**Fru ec drec? Rikku, fryd'c kuddah ehdu oui, du pa pnehkehk huh-Al Behd uhdu uin cneb! **Who is this? Rikku, what's gotten into you to be bringing non-Al Behd onto our ship!"

Rikku shook her head. "**Pnudran, ed'c hud fryd oui drehk! Ra EC yh Al Behd, yht E fyc kuehk du dnayd rec fuihtc! **Brother, it's not what you think! He IS an Al Behd, and I was going to treat his wounds!"

Brother stared intently into Janus's eyes for a moment. "**Tuac ra cbayg uin myhkiyka? **Does he speak our language?"

Janus spoke up. "**Oayr, E dyikrd socamv. So sudran fyc Al Behd, pid cra fyc gemmat po Sin frah E fyc jano ouihk,** Yeah, I taught myself, My mother was Al Behd, but she was killed by Sin when I was very young." A half-lie, as his mother had committed suicide after his father had left, but Sin was the easiest scapegoat he could think of.

Brother frowned, but stood aside, and let Rikku and Janus pass.

"In case you didn't pick up on it," Rikku explained, "That was my brother. He doesn't take too kindly to strangers, in case you didn't notice," she laughed, and stopped in front of a door. "Well, this is my room," she pushed a button next to the door, and it opened with a mechanical hiss.

The room itself, despite the lack of space, was decorated with various objects of interest: swimming gear, half-finished machina, and several posters for the Al Behd Psyches. In the middle was a simple twin-size bed. "Sorry about the lack of space in here," she smiled sheepishly. "It's a small ship, so we have to share things like closets and bathrooms and such. Speaking of which…" She walked through another door, which Janus figured led into one of said closets. There was the sound of someone pounding on metal, and then another hiss as a door opened.

A male voice came out of the door. "**Fryd ec ed huf, Rikku? E's pico nekrd huf, **What is it now, Rikku? I'm busy right now,"

"**Blappa, E'ja kud y kio rana. Ra'c rind, yht ra haatc cusa haf lsudrac, **Blappa, I've got a guy here. He's hurt, and he needs some new clothes,"

"**Cu? Fryd tu oui fyhd sa vun? **So? What do you want me for?"

"**Tu oui ryja yho cbyna Psyches ihevuhsc ra lyh ryja? **Do you have any spare Psyches uniforms he can have?"

The man named Blappa sighed loudly, and said, "**Oui ufa sa uha vun drec, Rikku, **You owe me one for this, Rikku," There was a rustling sound, and Rikku emerged carrying a bundle of clothes.

"I think these should fit; you and Blappa are about the same size. Now, take off your shirt; I better look at your wound,"

Janus obeyed, flushing bright red. The bloodstained jacket soon joined the tattered shirt on the floor. There was a sharp intake of breath from behind him as the makeshift bandage fell away. "What's wrong?" Janus asked, almost afraid to know the answer.

"Well, um…" Rikku paused to retrieve a bottle of liquid that was a venomous green. "I'm no expert, and it looks like your friend did an okay job, given the materials around, but it looks infected," she poured some of the liquid onto a rag.

"How could you tell?" He asked, and then yelped in pain as Rikku began dabbing at the wound. "Ow! What the heck is that!"

"Oh, quit it, you big baby," she resumed cleaning the gash. "It's an Al Behd Potion. It's not exactly pleasant to the touch, and it burns worse than Pyrefly Vodka going down, but," she imitated a Texas-style accent, doubtless in mockery of Cid, "it's guaranteed to cure what ails ya, so don't'cha dare leave home without it! And besides that, Normal wounds aren't supposed to turn green," She laughed when he winced again. She nodded, apparently satisfied, and said, "Okay, I think it'll be okay now. You should change," she walked out, shutting the door behind her to offer him some privacy.

"Let's have a look here," Janus said to himself. He pulled a black sleeveless shirt on, which to his surprise fit like a second skin. _I suppose it would have to in a Blitzball match…_ The pants and belt also fit well. The boots were slightly big for him, and the gloves were perfect. He glanced briefly in the mirror opposite the bed to get the the effect. _Wow, I don't even look like myself anymore…_ He touched the mirror, reassuring himself that he was indeed seeing his own reflection, and not another person there. He buckled the twin daggers around his waist, and knocked on the door.

"You done?" Rikku's muffled voice answered.

"Yeah. How do I look?" He opened the door, and Rikku's mouth dropped in astonishment.

"Wow, you look…" she paused for a moment, and Janus thought he caught a slight reddish tint upon her cheeks, but it was gone the next instant. "You could almost pass for an Al Behd! It's missing something, though…" She looked thoughtful for a moment, then snapped her fingers, as if she'd just figured it out. She went over to a small dresser, and pulled a pair of goggles out, fitting them over his head. "Now you really look the part! Let's go out and show everybody!"

"Um, we don't really have to--" but he was cut short, as he had been dragged forcefully out of the room. After another trek through several winding hallways, they were back on deck. Brother, Keyakku, and Nedus were already out on deck, trying and failing to communicate with a very affronted-looking Tidus.

Brother turned, classic scowl painted on his face. "**Rikku! Ed'c pyt ahuikn, droehk du dymg fedr drec Yevon vuum, fedruid oui clafehk ynuiht-- **Rikku! It's bad enough, trying to talk to this Yevon fool, without you screwing around--" He froze, looking at Janus. By now, everyone else on deck had the same astonishment evident on their faces.

"Hehe… Um, hi?" Janus laughed nervously.

Okay, the second chapter is done. Thank you to all those who reviewed, and I will update as soon as possible.


	3. Dive to the Depths

**Chocobo! Chocobo!**

DISCLAIMER: Janus, Monique, and Domovoi are mine, but FFX is not. No lawsuits, please.

For the record, the names of the Al Behd were not just thrown out there; they were the actual names of the characters. I looked it up.

_Narrations_

**Al Behd**

Translations

CHAPTER 3: Dive to the Depths

Brother quickly regained his composure, and scowled at Janus. "**Tuh'd drehg dryd palyica oui ryja dra cuug uv yh Al Behd, oui kad frydajan oui fyhd, **Don't think that because you have the look of an Al Behd, you get whatever you want," Nedus seemed to agree with him, shaking his head in disgust, but Kumal and Keyakku both seemed to approve.

"Wait here," Rikku whispered. "I better go sort this thing out," she quickly strode over to the group.

"**Caynlr res! **Search him!" Brother commanded. Rikku rolled her eyes, but obeyed, pulling Tidus to his feet, and quickly patted his pockets. She shook her head, signaling that he was okay. Brother began doing what seemed to be a very botched imitation of a person swimming, grunting feebly in an attempt to communicate.

"Right, whatever," Tidus was clearly not understanding.

"**Tu oui hud cbayg? **Do you not speak?" Brother said in an exasperated tone. He put his hand on Tidus's shoulder and pulled a pair of goggles from his pocket, mimicked putting them on his face, and then pointed out to sea.

"I said I don't understand!"

"**Ehcumahla! **Insolence!" Keyakku snarled, pointing his gun at Tidus.

Rikku quickly stepped in front of him. "**Fyed! **Wait!" She turned her attention to Tidus. "He said you could stay if you make yourself useful!"

Tidus looked at her in disbelief. "Y-You understand me?!" That earned him an elbow in the head from Kumal. "Alright, I'll work!" he rubbed his head in pain.

Meanwhile, Janus was examining the crane on the side of the ship. _I wonder what Monique's doing right now? _He remembered her words from the dream. _Was it my fault? Is Dom in a coma because of me?_

His thoughts were rudely interrupted by a hand clamping down on his shoulder. "Whatcha thinkin' about?" Tidus asked.

Janus looked away. "Nothing,"

Tidus shook his head. "Sure, you say that, but--"

"**Rao, oui! **Hey, you!" The duo whipped around to find an angered Brother yelling at them. "**Kad yfyo vnus drana! **Get away from there!"

Tidus, in some stroke of genius, decided to yell back. "Alright, alright! You don't have to shout!" Janus just shook his head, and got out of the way quickly, as Brother had come over to Tidus, and backhanded him on his head.

"**Suja ed, lebdyja! Kad du fung, essateydamo! **Move it, captive! Get to work, immediately!" Tidus just scowled, and followed Janus.

When he'd caught up to Janus and Rikku, she promptly whacked him on his head. "EEYOW! What the hell is it with you people and violence?!" The blonde put both arms over his head, attempting to protect himself.

Rikku shook her head. "You gotta learn to just take it and shrug it off. My brother doesn't take too kindly to strangers; yelling back at him will just make him like you even less,"

Tidus, now convinced she would not hit him again, resumed a normal standing position. "But what'd you hit me for?!"

Rikku shrugged. "I just wanted in on the action, I guess…" She giggled when his face turned a deep beet red.

"And you!" Tidus turned, hoping to vent his bad mood on Janus. "How come you can speak their language, huh?! And about Sin! How'd you know about Sin, and everything else?!"

Rikku stepped between them. "Look, we've got a job to do. Can't this wait 'til later?"

Tidus looked even angrier for a moment, but acquiesced. "Fine. What's this 'job?'"

"We found some ancient ruins right beneath us! It's not active now, but there still should be some power left. Our job," she made a gesture encircling the three of them. "Is to go down there and activate it, and then we should be able to salvage the big prize!" Tidus and Janus nodded. "Whoops, almost forgot!" she pulled a pair of goggles out of her pack, and handed them to Tidus. "Those are for you," She pulled three small metal cylinders out as well. "And we'll need these," Seeing the others' quizzical looks, she added, "They're breathing tanks. You just twist," She twisted the metal cap, and it sprang out, revealing a black rubber mouthpiece. "Then you stick it in your mouth, and you'll have about an hour of air. I've got spares just in case, so don't worry about running out of air," She handed two of the cylinders to Janus and Tidus. "We obviously wont' be able to talk down there, so you guys have to pay attention to any gestures I make. If you're running out of air, get my attention and I'll come over. Just don't lose your first one, 'cuz they're refillable, and they're not exactly common or cheap," The other two nodded, and pulled their goggles on, as well as their tanks. "Okay! Let's get to work!" She put her own tank in, and launched herself over the railing. Tidus shrugged, and leapt over as well. Janus attempted to get over with the same ease and grace, but instead ended up hitting the water like a rock. The other two laughed at his lack of ability, but dove under the water, Janus following suit.

Once under the surface, it was fairly easy to locate the ruins, as they were lit by a series of dim red lights, and the ship's anchor chain lead almost directly to it. Rikku led them to a hole in the outer wall, and into a small room with a console and door at the end. Rikku swam over to the console and began tapping the screen, which produced no effect whatsoever. Tidus shook his head, and swam over to the console, pushing the Al Behd out of the way. He took a much more violent approach towards the technology, pounding on it with his fists. Rikku lunged forward in alarm when he kicked it brutally, but much to her surprise, the door opened promptly and he swam into a larger room. Janus fought to keep from laughing at Rikku's crestfallen expression, as dropping his oxygen tank would not end well, and followed her out the opened door. She cut in front of him, however, and led Janus and Tidus into another dimly lit corridor, which led to yet another room with a complex-looking machine in the center.

_Wait a minute… Wasn't there a…_ The sound of someone screaming loudly while underwater reached his ears. _Yup, cue random monster attack._ He whipped around to find Tidus being viciously attacked by a group of fishlike fiends, each possessing very large teeth. _Piranhas… _The fact that they were so close meant Tidus could not use his sword without lopping off his own legs. Janus took his chance rushing forward and slicing two of the errant fish in two. Now freed, Tidus drew his Longsword and chopped a third in half. Rikku also lunged forward, stabbing a fourth with her metal claw, and Tidus disposed of the final two in one swift stroke.

Tidus flashed the other two a thumbs-up, and proceeded up to the 'core' of the room. Once again, Tidus's 'punch and kick until it either works or explodes' strategy came through, as after only a few seconds' 'coaxing', the large machine sputtered to life.

Rikku then motioned for the other two to follow into the larger chamber. For the second time, the muffled sound of a human screaming underwater could be heard. Janus drew his daggers, and Tidus followed suit, as Rikku was now fleeing from a large, octopus-like monster, with a large shell protecting its head. _Okay, you are being attacked by a giant tentacle monster. What do you do?_ Tidus seemed to have the right idea; he swam right up to the fiend and stabbed it right between the eyes. However, it swatted him away, and retreated to the opposite side of the room. It seemed to hesitate for a moment, as if waiting for something. _Aw, crap…_ Without warning, Tros propelled itself forward, ramming into the trio. Rikku, oddly enough, was the first to recover, and pulled a grenade from her pack, pulled the pin, and chucked it at the fiend, which was knocked back by the concussion. Once again, Tros fled to the opposite side of the room. In that moment, Tidus had a stroke of genius. He pointed to himself, then gestured in one direction around the central column, then to Janus and Rikku, and in the opposite direction. They nodded, understanding the message, and the three of them closed in on the squidlike fiend. Tidus stabbed it from behind, while Rikku and Janus stabbed and gouged at its eyes.

Suddenly, four very unpleasant sensations reached his brain in rapid succession. The first, being the pain of something hitting him in the stomach, in this case a tentacle, the second being the additional pain of his head colliding with a concrete wall, the third being the sudden lack of an oxygen nozzle in his mouth, and the fourth the obligatory seawater filling his lungs. Janus tried to hold what little breath he had left, diving to the bottom of the room in order to retrieve his lost air tank. Though he succeeded with little difficulty, when he was able to return his attention to the battle at hand, the sight before him was less than encouraging; Tidus had suffered a similar fate to Janus's, and Rikku was…

_Oh, shit…_ The fiend had a tentacle wrapped around the Al Behd's body, slowly crushing the life out of her as it raised her to its beaklike mouth. _I have to do something,_ he thought, and frantically tried to get to her._ I can't let her die, I won't! _At that moment, he felt an odd, burning sensation spread throughout his body. Looking down at his hand, he saw that a faint white aura was somehow emanating from him. In the half-second it took him to realize this, the burning shifted into an electric rush of pure energy, and Janus suddenly felt his body moving in a way he'd never thought it could. Faster than he would've thought humanly possible, he rocketed through the water, easily severing three of the fiend's tentacles as he went past, freeing Rikku. Tros shrieked in pain, and while it was still recovering, Tidus had swum up behind it, and drove his sword deep into the creature's flesh, and it dissolved into pyreflies as it died.

Janus immediately crossed the room to Rikku's unconscious form. Her breathing tank had floated off somewhere, and was nowhere to be found. Without thinking, Janus took his own tank out of his mouth, and pressed it to hers. He gestured upwards toward the surface, and Tidus nodded, and followed them out through the hole in the wall. Janus frantically swam for the surface, pulling Rikku up with him. When he finally broke the water, gasping for air, he noted that several of the other Al Behd were already searching the water. "**Racb… racb ic, **Help… help us," Janus tried to cry out to the people on deck, but found he couldn't yell and keep himself and Rikku above water at the same time.

Tidus's voice erupted behind him. "Hey, anyone up there?! HEY!!!" Brother's trademark mohawk appeared over the side of the railing.

"**Fryd dra…** What the…" his voice died in his throat as he saw his sister's condition. He immediately turned around, yelling in a considerably higher-pitched voice, "**LAKKAM! KAD DRA LNYRA! **LAKKAM! GET THE CRANE!" Janus saw the arm of the crane swing out over the edge, and lower what looked like a mesh platform supported by foam buoys on all sides into the water. Janus quickly climbed in after her, and Tidus followed.

As soon as they had been lowered onto the deck, Brother rushed forward, shoving Janus and Tidus out of the way in an attempt to reach Rikku. "**Rikku… fyga ib! Bmayca, fyga ib! **Rikku, wake up! Please, wake up!" He began to shake her violently.

Now it was Brother's turn to be pushed away. With practiced precision, Janus laid the unconscious girl down on the deck. _She's not breathing, and no pulse,_ he realized with fear. He placed his hands over her chest, and pumped hard onto where her heart should have been. "8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15!" he leaned forward, breathing into her mouth. When no breath came forth, he repeated the process. Still no breath. A third attempt failed, and a fourth. "Rikku-don't-you-fucking-dare-die-on-ME!" For the fifth time, he forced the air into her lungs, and Rikku's emerald eyes shot open. Janus pulled back just in time, as she immediately turned over and coughed up a generous amount of seawater, and collapsed, drawing deep, shuddering breaths.

"You okay?" she turned, looking at Janus, and nodded, smiling. She stood shakily.

"Whew, I thought I was gonna die!"

"**Rikku!**" For what seemed like the millionth time that day, Janus was shoved unceremoniously out of the way as Brother rushed to his sister. "**Yna oui ugyo?** Are you okay?"

"**Veha, E's veha,** Fine, I'm fine," She staggered over to the doorway to the interior of the ship, and disappeared inside.

Brother scowled, but said nothing, and stood by the doorway, as if guarding it.

Several of the other Al Behd had come aboard by now as well, and one of them saluted Brother. "**Fa vuiht dra airship! Dra naluct fana nekrd! **We found the airship! The records were right"

"**Tuh'd zicd cdyrt drana! Pnehk ed ib!** Don't just stand there! Bring it up!" Brother continued to scowl. The others went inside. Tidus tried to follow, but Kumal backhanded him.

"**Oui, uidceta! **You, outside!"

"Hey, I helped out, didn't I?" Kumal just pressed a button, slamming the door shut. "What gives? These are some weird people…" He turned to Janus. "Now correct me if I'm wrong, but you have some explaining to do!"

Janus sighed. He'd wanted to avoid this, but there was no alternative. "…Okay," he said finally. "Ask away."

"How come you can speak their language?"

"You see, I'm not originally from Zanarkand," he replied. "It's a dialect I just sort of… picked up." Twisting the truth was becoming almost second nature on this little 'trip'.

"Okay," Tidus nodded. Janus breathed an inward sigh of relief; he was buying it for now. "So, how'd you know what that Sin thing was? And why is it you seem to know everything that's going to happen before it happens?"

"I…" Janus struggled to find words that would not get him into trouble. "I have a… a sixth sense, of sorts. I can sort of… pick up on things." Again, Tidus looked suspicious for a moment, but nodded, a simple 'okay' being his answer.

"**Rao,** Hey," said a quiet voice. Janus did not immediately recognize it, because the owner was usually yelling, but indeed it was Brother.

"**Fryd?** What?"

He put a hand on Janus's shoulder awkwardly. "**Dryhg oui, vun rambehk Rikku. E… E fuimt mega oui du lusa du fedr ic Home, ev ed ec ymnekrd fedr oui…** Thank you, for helping Rikku. I… I would like you to come with us to Home, if it is alright with you…" He blushed slightly, proving that, as Janus suspected, he was not at all accustomed to these moments of tenderness, and removed the hand.

Janus smiled. "**E't muja du,** I'd love to," Brother simply blushed slightly, and went inside.

"What'd he say?" Tidus wondered.

"Just thanked me for helping Rikku, and invited me to Home…" _I'd love to come… That is, if I could go there without it being blown up…_

A loud growl came from Tidus's stomach. "Uhh… hungry… You'd think they'd at least feed us, after all we did…"

"Somebody call for food?" Tidus jumped about a foot into the air (from a sitting position, no less), and Rikku giggled from having successfully snuck up on him.

Then he noticed that Rikku was holding a tray of food. "Whoa! Right on!" he seized the tray, immediately scarfing down about half of it in two gulps.

Rikku gave him a look of absolute disgust, then handed Janus his own tray of food, smiling briefly before again being interrupted by a loud choking noise from Tidus.

Exasperated, she chucked her water canteen at him. The choking ceased quickly thereafter.

"This stuff is SPICY!" he panted. Janus tentatively took a bite of the meat. He gagged, choking slightly on the fiery meat.

Rikku giggled at his reaction. "Too hot?" Janus nodded. "Well, Sand Wolf is so bland, we gotta spice it up with something. If you don't like the meat, try that," she pointed to what looked like a very thick stem of a flower, cut in half. When Janus looked at her quizzically, she added, "It's a Sandragora root, they're really sweet, kinda like candy. Just try not to bite the skin, it's super bitter and really nasty,"

Janus bit into the flesh of the plant and his eyes widened in surprise as a cool, sweet liquid flowed into his mouth. "Hey this is good!" judging from the way Tidus was gnawing on his own, he had reached a similar verdict.

Tidus quickly finished it, setting the empty skin aside. "So, your name is Rikku, right?"

The Al Behd nodded. "Yup!"

For reasons Janus could not determine, Tidus let out a great whoop of joy. 'You really DO understand!" He continued laughing for a few moments, then turned back to Rikku. "So, why didn't you say anything earlier?"

"I didn't get a chance to!" Rikku said with an apologetic look. "Everyone thought oui were a fiend!"

Tidus gave her a confused look. "Uh… we?"

"'Oui' means 'you'," Rikku and Janus said in unison.

Tidus glanced between them a moment. "So, who are you guys anyway?"

"We're Al Behd. Can't you tell?" She frowned. "You're not an Al Behd-hater, are you?"

"I don't even know what an 'Al Behd' is!"

"You've been traveling with one," she retorted.

"I… what?" Tidus looked suspiciously at Janus.

The redhead grinned nervously. "Yeah, I'm half-Al Behd, forgot to mention,"

The three sat in tense silence for a moment. It was Rikku that broke the awkward moment. "So, do you two have names?"

"Janus," Janus said quietly. "And he's Tidus."

"Yo," the blonde man nodded at her.

Rikku looked him up and down. "You know, you've got some pretty weird clothes for a Yevonite. Where are you from?"

"Zanarkand," Tidus said, sliding into a cocky grin. "I'm a blitzball player. _Star_ player of the Zanarkand Abes!" He mimed kicking a blitzball.

"Did you… hit your head or something?"

"Um, you hit me?"

Rikku shook her head. "Oh, right. Do you remember anything before that?"

_I watched Tidus trying to tell her about his life, about Zanarkand, what he knew about Sin, and the whole time I felt a little sorry for him, because of the look of doubt spreading on her face._

Tidus noticed that Rikku was not buying his story. "Did I say something funny?"

"You two were near _Sin_!" She spared the two of them a look of pity. "Don't worry, you'll be better in no time! They say your head gets funny when Sin is near; maybe you just had some sort of dream?"

"You mean we're sick?"

"Because of Sin's Toxin, yeah."

"But both of us having the same dream at the same time?"

"Stranger things have happened," Rikku said solemnly. "See, there _is_ no Zanarkand anymore. Sin destroyed it a thousand years ago, so no one plays blitzball there,"

A look of pure shock crossed Tidus's face. "Hey, what do you mean, 'a thousand years ago'?!" Rikku opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off. "But I _saw_ Sin attack Zanarkand! You're saying that happened a thousand years ago? No way!" He looked expectantly towards Janus. "Come on, man! Back me up here!"

"I certainly don't know," Janus countered. "It definitely _seemed_ real, but why would Rikku lie?"

Tidus was visibly distressed at this, and turned away.

"Hey, you play blitzball?" Rikku asked, hoping to change the subject. Tidus nodded sadly. "You know, you should go with us to Luca. Someone might know you two, or you might find someone you recognize. And if not, there's the tournament! The Psyches are really going to town this year, and--"

"Hold on a sec," Tidus interrupted. "What the heck is Luca?"

Rikku gave a sigh of exasperation. She paced back and forth for a moment, as if deciding something, then stood between the two of them. "Okay, I'll get you guys to Luca, promise!" Tidus looked rather unenthusiastic. "Unless you'd rather stay here?" Tidus shook his head quickly. "Okay then, I'll go tell the others. Wait here," She turned to leave, then turned back. "Oh, and whatever you do, don't tell anyone you're from Zanarkand, okay? Yevon says it's a holy place; you might upset someone," Tidus nodded though it was obvious he didn't understand. Rikku walked through the door to below deck, and was gone.

Tidus hung his head, going over to the railing for a moment, reeling at these revelations.

Janus felt a light throb in his lower back, and reached behind him to the source of the pain. He felt the outline of the scar from his encounter with Geosgaeno. The wound twinged at his touch. _It was in that moment, I think I realized something that would change the way I looked Spira forever. It was in that moment that I knew, that this situation wasn't a dream. I was in an alien world, and I was alone. I knew one thing: I _had _to get home, no matter what._

Janus was pulled out of his thoughts when Tidus gave a frustrated cry behind him and kicked one of the crates on the deck. Almost as if in response to his act of violence, the ship began to shake violently. "What the hell?!" he stumbled and fell backwards. Janus looked in fear out to sea. Sure enough, a column of water burst forth from the surface, followed by a gigantic, demonic-looking fin.

"SIN!" came the fearful cry behind them. Keyakku and Kumal had run out, and both fell on the unstable deck. The sea was writhing with the demon's fury, and Janus was finding it impossible to stand. "**SIN EC LUSA! **SIN IS COME!" The ship tilted precariously to one side, causing the occupants to hold on for dear life. Then, an enormous wave crashed down onto the deck, and anything that wasn't bolted down, namely Tidus and Janus, was swept overboard.

The whole world seemed to stop for the infinitesimal moment in which he fell. Rikku's voice reached him through a haze. She was yelling, calling for him, and Brother was holding her back telling her it was no use…

Then his body hit the icy water, and Janus slipped into oblivion.

Good, yes? Seems like Janus is in some hot water now. I put the breathing tanks in because quite frankly, holding your breath for _that_ long in water _that_ deep is neither healthy nor physically possible.


	4. Meetings

**Chocobo! Chocobo!**

DISCLAIMER: Final Fantasy X is not mine. Begone, foul lawyers! RETURN TO THE HELL WHENCE YOU CAME!

Oh, and yes, that attack last chapter was Janus's first Overdrive. I call it Rocket Slash. No, to answer some questions that arose, this is not going to turn into a romance fic with Rikku. I'm planning on Janus and Rikku becoming close friends, and nothing more.

_Narrations_

**Al Bhed**

(Translations)

Chapter 4: Meetings

"Janus!" the redhead groaned; someone was yelling at him, and there was the feeling of warmth on his face.

"Janus! Wake up, man!" Janus's eyes opened to the sight of Tidus's face bending over him, with several people behind him.

"Hey, your friend okay?" Janus groaned; he knew that voice all too well. _Wakka…_

Janus coughed slightly, gagging at the taste of saltwater in his mouth, and sat up. "Yeah, I'm okay… Tidus, what happened?"

Tidus stood, shaking his head. "I dunno man, I just woke up out there in the ocean. I guess you drifted ashore, cause Wakka here saved you."

The boy stood, dusting the sand off his pants. "Well, thanks Wakka. I appreciate it."

But the islander's attention was elsewhere. He was eyeballing Tidus, as if sizing him up. "Hey, you look like a pretty good athlete, ya? You blitz?"

Tidus only smirked, picking up a ball. "Heh. Watch this!" He kicked the ball up, balancing it perfectly on his head. Everybody stepped back, giving him room. Then, Tidus launched the blitzball up in the air, doing a backflip in midair, and kicking the ball out over the water.

There was a collective gasp at the blonde's skill. "Showoff," Janus muttered, but no one seemed to hear this, or care.

"You're no amateur," Wakka observed. "Who you play for?"

"The Zanarkand Abes!" Tidus said proudly. Wakka's teammates all gasped, muttering to each other in low voices; Janus was certain he caught the words 'blasphemy' and 'insane' among them.

"… What team you say again?"

Tidus seemed to realize his mistake in that moment. "Uh, I meant… forget that. I got too uh, close to Sin, and my head's all foggy-like…"

Insert another collective gasp. Wakka and the Aurochs performed what Janus recognized as the Prayer of Yevon, and utter confusion was written on Tidus's face. "Man, Sin's Toxin got to ya," Wakka shook his head, pity evident in his voice. "But, you're still alive. Praise be to Yevon." After a few moments, he turned back to his teammates. "Alright, back to practice!" He looked back at Tidus and Janus. "And now for the intros, ya? I'm Wakka, coach _and _captain of the Besaid Aurochs, brudda!"

"Janus and Tidus," the redhead replied quietly. Tidus, meanwhile, made an embarrassed look as his stomach growled rather loudly, which caused Wakka to laugh. "What, you hungry?" both nodded. "Okay then, back to the village! I'll get ya somethin'!" the orange-haired blitz captain (Janus still asserted that Wakka's hair looked like a quail) strode up the sandy path to a grassy area, after which a fork in the road was visible.

"Hey, Wakka!" Tidus's voice came from behind. The older man turned around. "Ya?"

_I could see the doubt written on Tidus's face; the idea that his whole life had been a lie must have been really heartbreaking for him._

"It's true Zanarkand was destroyed, right? A thousand years ago? So, it's just a big pile of rubble now, isn't it?"

Wakka gave sort of a sad smile, looking out into the lagoon at some of the ruins. "Long time ago, there were a whole lot of cities in Spira. Big cities with machina--machines--to run 'em. People played all day and let the machina do the work. And then, well, take a look," he gestured around at the ruined towers. "Sin came, and destroyed the machina cities. And Zanarkand along with 'em. Yeah, that was about a thousand years ago, just like you said." He paused for a moment, shrugging. "If you ask me, Sin's our punishment for letting things get out of hand. What gets me, though, is we gotta suffer, 'cause of what some goofballs did way back when! Course, we must always repent for our sins! That's important! It's just that, it's hard to keep at it sometimes, you know?"

_I could see it in his eyes, this was hurting him._ Wakka continued, laughing loudly. "But you from the Zanarkand Abes, that was a good one, huh?" he put his arm around Tidus's shoulder. "Look, I ain't sayin' the team never existed, ya? But ya gotta figure, a team livin' in luxury like that'd be pretty soft, eh?" He grinned that big, obnoxious, trademarked Wakka-grin, and headed up the path. Tidus, visibly disheartened, followed him. Janus elected not to follow them; he'd had more than enough water for the day, and preferred to remain dry, at least until he could get a shower or something in the village. That, and he really did not want to put up with Wakka, whom he had always considered an annoyance at best. The blitzer called out to him from the edge of the cliff, but he shook his head, pointing in the direction of the forest path. Wakka and Tidus both looked worried, but Janus sighed, responding, "Look, there's a path, isn't there? I'll be fine. I just really don't want to get any wetter than I already am, okay?"

Wakka frowned, walking forward, but Tidus, once again in a stroke of genius, somehow managed to stumble and fall backwards off the cliff. Wakka turned around, sighed, and walked over to the edge. "You be careful, ya? I gotta take care of this guy so he doesn't hurt himself!" the boy nodded, and Wakka was gone.

With a sigh, Janus proceeded to climb up to the forest path, walking down the dirt road. He was surprised at how beautiful the island was; the game had made it look pretty, but in 'real life', the locale was absolutely breathtaking. There were waterfalls, plants, and various flowers all over the place, and on the other side, looking out to the ocean, Janus could see the horizon perfectly clearly. This was nice, much better than swimming around in a piranha-infested river.

Janus looked up, hearing a voice. It was certainly female, and was that… _singing?_

"_Though you're gone,_

_I still believe that you can call out my name…_"

The tune was very familiar. Janus looked around, searching for the source of the voice, but couldn't find the mystery-singer.

"_A voice from the past, joining yours and mine,_

_Adding up the layers of harmony…_"

_The moment I heard that song, I knew that there was some connection between Earth and Spira. I didn't know what it was at the time, but I could tell. The song was Melodies of Life, which was probably my favorite song from Final Fantasy, save for One-Winged Angel._

Janus looked around; the voice was closer. He got to a bridge over a small waterfall, and realized that the voice was actually coming from _beneath_ him. Curious, he looked over the edge of the bridge. Whoever it was, she was out of his field of vision. He tried to lean further, but without warning, the rope snapped, and Janus tumbled over the edge, landing with a splash in the water below.

He dimly registered a shriek, and pushed up out of the water, spluttering. A hand viciously smacked him across the face, and he was knocked back into the water. When he came back up, he almost immediately regretted this course of action; before him was a girl roughly his age, who was of course very much naked, and understandably very angry, clutching a cloth over her body in the interest of preserving modesty. Janus was able to register short black hair and the emerald eyes of an Al Bhed before her fist connected with his cheek. "**Fryd dra ramm fana oui tuehk?! Ku yfyo!** (What the hell were you doing?! Go away!) Janus, too stunned to do otherwise, scrambled up the rocks, which had been (thankfully) carved into stairs, and sat on the grass, waiting for whatever might happen next. _So much for staying dry…_ A few minutes later, the girl climbed up over the stairs, fully clothed this time, and scowling.

"Just what the hell do you think you were doing? I ought to make you a eunuch for that, you pervert!" Janus paled; she was clutching a Jian in her left hand.

"Look, it was an accident, I swear! I was just walking along and--"

"And thought you'd get a bit of eyecandy before heading back to the village, huh?!"

"No, no! I heard singing and--"

"Oh, and I suppose it had nothing to do with the fact that I was _naked_?"

"No, please, it's just that I heard that song and I was wondering who in the world would have known it!"

The girl froze. "You know that song?"

Raphael nodded. "My sister used to sing it all the time," Which was true; Monique had always liked the song. "Where did you pick it up?"

The girl blushed. "My mother sang it to me when I was little. She said she learned it from one of Lord Braska's guardians, she never got his name. She says all she remembered was he had red hair…"

_Yet another mystery around Braska's Guardians… Red hair, that sounds like Jecht. _"Huh. Well, uh… sorry about that. The rope snapped," he gestured towards the bridge.

The girl sheathed her sword, shaking her head. "It's okay. I overreacted. I was just startled, is all,"

Just then, Janus realized something. "Hey, you were speaking Al Bhed!"

The girl paled, and looked away. "That's because… I'm an Al Bhed."

"Hey, cool! So am I! Well, half anyways…"

She looked up, seeming heartened. "Oh, well that changes things a little. I'm Kazume," she held out her hand, which was taken.

"Janus Lenoir," the redhead smiled. He then looked at her armor, which didn't look like an Al Bhed's clothing at all. She was wearing a breastplate over a red shirt, with black pants and boots, and had simple-looking metal gauntlets. "Um, your clothes aren't exactly typical Al Bhed stuff. What gives?"

She walked onward. "Well, it's simple, really. I'm a Crusader," Janus was shocked at this revelation, and followed her.

"Hold on! If you're an Al Bhed, how come the Crusaders let you join?"

"Well to put it bluntly, I was captured by the Yevon priesthood when I was eight. They taught me Spiran, and apparently made an experiment out of seeing if a 'heathen' could be 'converted'. It didn't really work completely, but I got shuffled off to the side into the Crusaders. I'm a private under Captain Luzzu, but if the Operation goes well, Luzzu told me himself that he'd try and get me promoted to Captain,"

"Oh," Janus said quietly. He remembered all too well what the outcome of Operation Mi'hen had been. "So Kazume, are you headed towards the village?"

The girl nodded. "Yeah. My patrol is over, so I'm heading back to the lodge. Come to think of it, I've never seen you around before, and wearing those clothes, I think I'd remember you. Where are you from?"

Janus froze. _Damn._ "I, uh… I ran into some Al Behd out in the ocean, and they helped me, gave me food and clothes."

Kazume's expression softened. "Really? You must have run into Cid's people. They're nicer than most Al Bhed; I've dealt with them before. The Psyches are my favorite blitz team, and I can't help but notice you're wearing their uniform."

"Yeah, some guy named Blappa gave it to me."

Her eyes widened. "Wow, you actually got a _uniform_ from _Blappa_?! As in, THE Blappa?"

Janus nodded. Kazume's mouth opened slightly, as if she didn't know what to say to this.

"Kazume!" the two of them looked up to see a boy of around 18 running up the path toward them. Kazume sighed.

"Gatta, I'm okay, you don't have to send a search party every time I'm more than five minutes late…"

"But there are fiends on the road! You can never be too careful!"

"Gatta, go back to the village. Tell Luzzu I'm coming."

The Crusader looked doubtful for a moment, but nodded, heading back the way he came.

Kazume shook her head, smiling. "Gatta. He means well, but he's a little on the dense side…" They finally came to a strange-looking statue, which Kazume scowled at, and continued on down the path.

When they finally came to the village, Janus saw Wakka and Tidus off to the side, Wakka apparently teaching him the Prayer, eliciting only confusion from the blonde.

_Of course, I knew what was going through his head at the time. I couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor guy. I mean, he was completely clueless as to this world, and here I was knowing everything that would happen before it happened._

Wakka turned, noticing the two. "You sure take your sweet time, ya?" He looked at Kazume, and frowned. _I forgot… Wakka doesn't like the Al Bhed…_ He looked at Kazume, who bore an equally sour look of disgust.

"I guess this is goodbye, Janus, seeing as how I'm leaving tomorrow," she smiled at him before heading towards the blue Crusaders' Lodge.

"Stay away from her, ya? Al Bhed like her are nothin' but trouble…" Wakka grabbed Janus by the arm, leading him over to Tidus. "Okay, go present yourselves to the temple summoner. Maybe a little prayer will help heal the Toxin, ya? I'm gonna go cook lunch," he walked over to his little hut, disappearing inside.

"Well, we got nothin' else to do…" Tidus muttered. "So why not?"

"Yeah, let's go," Janus agreed.

Inside the temple, Janus looked amazed at the architecture; the place was so much bigger than it looked in the game. Tidus went to examine a statue of a man in a robe, while Janus looked up at the statues of the people he recognized as Yunalesca and Zaon. Suddenly a voice caught his attention. He turned around to look at a priest, who was looking at him intently.

"Excuse me, can I help you?"

"Pardon my intrusion traveler, but can you tell me your name?"

"Janus Lenoir, why?"

The priest's eyes widened. "Janus _Lenoir_? Forgive me, but is there any relation to a Domovoi Lenoir?"

Cliffhanger powers, activate!


End file.
